- Latin name
- Calluna vulgaris
- Element
- water
- Planet
- Venus
- Safe to eat?
- No, not for eating or drinking
How to use it
- Carry a sprig of white heather for luck
- Hang a dried bundle in the home for protection
- Burn a little with fern to call for rain, as in old custom
- Add dried sprigs to a wreath or altar arrangement
Lore
In Scotland white heather is carried for luck and often tucked into wedding bouquets. Heather has long been used for thatch, bedding and brooms, and legend tells of the Picts brewing a secret heather ale, retold in a ballad by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Safety
Not for eating as a herb. Wild heather honey is safe, but do not confuse ling heather with other heaths, some of which are toxic. Burn only small amounts with good ventilation, and never set fire to heather outdoors, as moorland fires spread fast.
Not for eating or drinking.